For centuries, North American newcomers competed with extant residents during waves of migration, reshaping the face of the continent. Indigenous people had been on the move before settlers arrived. Iroquoians expanded from St. Lawrence River territory, coming into conflict with Mi’kmaw, Abenaki, Maliseet and Mohawk nations. When French fur merchants arrived, they formed alliances with Algonquin nations, bringing them European technology and weapons. The Mohawk and Haudenosaunee (Iroquois)  Confederacy received guns from rival Dutch traders. British colonists in Massachusetts expanded north but Algonquin superior warfare and their French weapons kept them at bay.

With mass migration from Britain and France, indigenous people had to choose who they could best tolerate. The Mohawks and Shawnee backed the British; their indigenous guerilla tactics helped to defeat American invaders in 1814 while Britain was busy fighting Napoleon in Europe. Americans then followed their “manifest destiny” west, encountering Sioux nations defending their territories. The Metis moved south into Lakota territory. The British formed commercial alliances with the west coast Salish and gold discoveries brought more mass migration. By the late 1800’s indigenous migrations and the European rush for land ended, but their legacy endures.